A cable tie can generally refer to a variety of tying apparatuses, including tie straps, zip ties, wire ties, hose ties, bundling ties, and the like. Some cable ties were originally designed to bundle and organize electric cables, but have become widely used in home, agriculture, industry, automotive, and many other fields. Cable ties can be used to replace twine or rope in some instances where ease of cinching to the desired tightness is desired. Many cable ties are weatherproof and provide a more secured attachment than some hand-tied knots.
A typical cable tie design includes a head having a toothed, locking pawl inside an aperture, and a flexible strap having a series of transverse-oriented teeth. When one end of the strap is inserted into the aperture, the pawl engages the strap teeth in a deflecting ratcheting motion, which effectively secures the strap into a loop which can be further adjusted to the desired diameter and tightness by pulling on the strap. In this example, the pawl is configured to prevent the loop from enlarging and effectively loosening around an object or bundle of objects, and only allows a further decrease in diameter as the cable tie is cinched.
Conventional cable ties are a locking type, which are designed to secure the pawl in a manner difficult to release once engaged. The cable tie must usually be completely severed, and subsequently destroyed, to release the object or bundle. By contrast, designs for multiple-use cable ties are available, which permit release of the pawl, often by a lever or extension pivoting the pawl out of engagement with the teeth on the strap. The strap portion is then free to slide out of the aperture for reuse.
The insertion of the strap end of the cable tie into the head aperture can be a tedious assembly step. The aperture is often small and requires accurate insertion of the end of the strap to engage the pawl with the teeth of the strap. During mass assembly, the time required to perform the assembly step becomes more important, for example, when attaching labels to products, wrapping rodent barriers around fruit trees, or attaching fencing to wires. Some of these examples require the user to thread the strap portion into the head aperture while holding the bundle of objects together, kneeling close to the ground, or while stretching to reach above head-level.
Therefore, a need exists for an improved tie strap that allows reuse and increases ease of assembly. Embodiments of the present disclosure are directed to fulfilling these and other needs.